Hawkeye Reporter

There were 22 deaths with COVID-19 listed as the underlying cause reported in Iowa during the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, a 4.8% increase over the previous week, according to The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

In the week ending Aug. 27, 2022, there were 568 deaths in the state. 23.9% of deaths were caused by heart disease, 21.3% were from cancer and 9.7% were from COVID-19. Additionally, 9.9% of deaths were from Alzheimer's disease and dementia.

Studies show doctors and medical examiners may underreport Alzheimer's disease and dementia-related conditions as the underlying cause of death on death certificates, according to the National Institute on Aging.

Once infected, older adults with dementia are likely to develop a more severe and dangerous illness. The diseases which make an older adult more vulnerable to COVID-19 are age-associated chronic conditions, according to the Bright Focus Foundation.

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Heart disease	136	123
Malignant neoplasms (cancerous tumor)	121	128
Chronic lower respiratory diseases	41	28
COVID-19 (multiple cause)	33	33
Cerebrovascular diseases	26	29
COVID-19 (underlying cause)	22	21
Alzheimer's disease	19	25
Diabetes mellitus	17	17
Influenza and pneumonia	< 10	< 10
Nephritis, nephrotic syndrome and nephrosis	< 10	13

Cause of Death	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 27, 2022	Deaths in Week Ending Aug. 20, 2022
Alzheimer disease and dementia	56	52